By Saskia Albrect and Holly Simensen
g u
r T
he German Oldenburg Verband has a rich history tracing back over 400 years. By the end of the twen-
Dressage
tieth century, it had earned itself a stellar reputation for producing world-class dressage horses. Well-known sires such as Donnerhall and Rubinstein and more recently Sandro Hit became popular in the breeding lines of many great Grand Prix dressage hors- es. At the turn of the twenty-first century, Oldenburg jumper breed- ers stepped forward to introduce a significant change to the Verband in order to showcase Oldenburg-bred horses winning in more than the dressage arena—they were winning in the jumping arena as well.
SEPARATION TO SUCCEED
Te concept of separating the jumping division from the dressage horses, which happened in 2001, came about because of the frustra- tion of Oldenburg breeders who were supplying world-class jump- ers that were often overlooked by competitors searching for their next team horses. Many competitors felt that only “pure” jumper verbands were able to produce such a horse—and that Oldenburg breeders bred mainly dressage horses.
Te formation of the jumping division was the result of col- laboration between Paul Schockemoehle, formerly a superb inter- national, two-time silver medal Olympian and three-time European champion himself, and the Verband’s brilliant breeding director, Dr. Wolfgang Schulze-Schleppinghoff. Joining these two men with their dream was Gilbert Boeckmann, international rider and renowned breeder; Gerd Sosath, international rider, renowned breeder and father of excellent jumper riders; Peter Weinberg, former husband of international rider Helena Weinberg and father of international rider Tomas Weinberg; Jans Vleugels, international rider; and
Soeren van Roenne, international rider. To- gether this formidable group of well-informed horsemen and jumper riders were our founding fa- thers, and their vision has yielded extraordinary results.
From the beginning, the division placed great value on sound- ness and the use of stallions and mares that have proven themselves on the course. It is this trial against faults and the clock that separates the wheat from the chaff. Only show jumping competitions provide this objective selection criteria and no other tests can replace the atmosphere of many spectators at a show. Old- enburg jumping breeders realized this from day one and many espouse this philosophy and place their bets par- ticularly on top athletes. Oldenburg jumping breeders are open to exclusive performance bloodlines from other breeds providing the performance and pedigrees meet the criteria. One good example is the Selle Français stallion Baloubet du Rouet, an Olympic win- ner with Rodrigo Pessoa. Soundness and overall good health are another area that is of great concern
TOP OF PAGE: Dreamscape Farm’s stallion Lestat. MIDDLE: Paul Schockemöhle, chairman of Springpferdezuchtverband Oldenburg- International. BOTTOM: Dr. Schulze-Schleppinghoff.
Warmbloods Today 35
Oldenburg Horse Breeder’s Society Both photos courtesy GOV
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